PUSH Discourages Inhuman Ways of Protest Costing Innocent Lives

Online, April 28, 2010 (Newswire.com) - ISLAMABAD: Press United to Serve Humanity (PUSH), a Pakistan-based, non-profit, non-governmental and non-sectarian consortium of journalists working for the freedom of press and protection of human rights, in a statement issued here on Wednesday condemned the irresponsible attitude and way of protest by doctors during the tussle with the media which led to death of a poor girl as the doctors refused to treat her because they were on a protest strike.

The journalist consortium, expressing sorrow and grave concern over the incident reported by a columnist of national daily, stressed on the organizations to refrain from adopting such methods of protest strikes which could lead to violation of basic human rights and right of an individual to live.

Last month when some media persons while fulfilling their professional responsibilities questioned the death of a woman patient at a government hospital, the matter turned ugly and the doctors announced a strike due to which hundreds of patients faced difficulties. One such patient was 12-year-old Nighat, who belonged to a poor family in Okara, a district of Punjab and after death of her parents she was diagnosed for high blood sugar disease. She was admitted to Government Hospital in Lahore and after three weeks she was discharged with an advice to regularly take injections for the high blood sugar. She was brought to the Lahore Hospital on March 30th but medical staff refused to treat her or provide her with the needed medicine due to doctors' strike. After four days when doctors called off the strike, Nighat was admitted in the emergency ward but she could not survived because her sugar level had crossed redline.

"No doubt, the right to protest is a perceived human right arising out of a number of recognized human rights and it plays a vital role in the development of democratic society but such inhuman ways of protest which cost innocent lives are highly condemnable." PUSH concluded.

Note to Editors:
This story was discussed by Mr. Ammar Chaudhary in his column published in Daily Express on April 26, 2010.